Some people started singing it not knowing what it was….
Ok… that might have been a little mean but sometimes I can’t help myself. Hello fellow Addicts. Wookiee here and still at my mad antics like usual. So, hot off an epic time at Springfield in Florida, I had to take the time to share a realization I had while enjoying the heck out of my life.
At the very end of October, you may have seen the news that EA announced that The Simpsons Tapped Out has made over 100 million dollars. Wowza! That’s a lot of doll hairs! I also read news in July that TSTO (for EA’s 2nd business quarter) had 5.4 million daily active players, generated 6 billion gameplay minutes, 1 billion quests, and players had spent more than 233 billion in-game dollars. It seems pretty safe to say that TSTO is quite popular and a lucrative venture for Electronic Arts.
Why do I mention all this? Well, from time to time I hear folks question the longevity of the game. One of the biggest things talked about seems to be about new characters and maintaining the freshness of the game. For a game about a show that has lasted 25 seasons, it seems like it could really go on and on, doesn’t it? Every new episode seems to have at least one new character. Even knocking out the one-hit wonders… we are currently at over 500 episodes (The Kid is Alright was #535). That’s a lot of future content!
Opinion pieces are generally not my cup of tea but I really wanted to share something that hit home for me when I saw a simple decoration in the Krusty Burger eating section of Springfield in Universal Studios Orlando.
As I wandered all over smiling at all the amazing stuff to see… this poster of characters from the show simply wowed me. It came with a diagram to tell you who each character was. Since images don’t translate when they’re not life size, I’ll just share the list that accompanied the diagram.
There are 457 characters on this list and it doesn’t even include the Rich Texan or Abe Lincoln. While it includes a ton of characters, it struck me this veritable cornucopia (sorry, it is Thanksgiving time) doesn’t even completely cover all the options EA could come up with for the game.
Just for fun, I went through the poster and starred out every character we already had.
I may have missed one or two but other than looking like a cell phone 4G coverage map, this hopefully gives you a small idea of what could be in store for all of us. (UPDATE: McBain, Jub-Jub and Poochie aren’t starred. Best. Readers. Ever.)
Why do I even mention all this? Just to say that I think we have a lot more fun to come and considering the cash cow this game has become for EA, I wouldn’t worry about longevity right now. If you’re a tech geek, the game files still have room for plenty of updates which is always a good indication for future growth.
I love this game and all the extras it has brought like blogs and communities and photo sharing opportunities. I’d love for it all to never ever end (insert Sandlot reference of kid saying forever over and over here) and barring the zombie apocalypse, I believe we’re safe for now.
Y’all stay classy… Wookiee out!